Amado Cota-Robles

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A Tucson man was sentenced to 15 years in prison Monday for severely beating an elderly man, who died six years later, during a 1991 robbery.

Lorenzo Abeyta, 40, was already serving time for an unrelated robbery when he was sentenced.

Amado Cota-Robles, 80, was living alone in the 4600 block of South 11th Avenue when two burglars broke into his house through a window between 2 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. on Sept. 29, 1991.

According to Tucson Police Department reports, Cota-Robles said he was beaten into unconsciousness by the men, who kept demanding money. The second man was never caught.

The burglars got away with his car, $70 cash, a TV, his telephone and a key chain. The car was later found.

The beating was so severe, doctors said, it caused dementia and eventually Cota-Robles' death.

Abeyta was indicted for Cota-Robles' murder in July 2006 after authorities compared his DNA with blood found in Cota-Robles' car and found a match.

Abeyta was originally charged with first-degree murder, aggravated assault, robbery and burglary.

The robbery and burglary charges were eventually dismissed because the statute of limitations had expired, and the case spent several months in limbo while the attorneys argued over whether the statute of limitation had passed on the aggravated assault charge.

The Arizona Court of Appeals eventually said prosecutor William McCollum Jr. could move forward with the case.

Abeyta pleaded guilty to the aggravated assault in May and agreed to serve between five and 15 years in prison. The murder charge was dismissed.

On Monday, Pima County Superior Court Judge Howard Hantman gave Abeyta the maximum.

According to court documents, Abeyta told a pre-sentence report writer that around the time of the beating he was drinking heavily and committing property crimes for cash.

However, the defendant also proclaimed his innocence, saying he pleaded guilty only to avoid a trial.

"I just want to go home," Abeyta told the report writer. "They knew they didn't have anything on me."

Two of Cota-Robles' grandchildren told Hantman that up until the attack, their grandfather was healthy, took daily walks and was a big part of their families' lives.

Cota-Robles never returned to his home after the beating.

Because the beating took place under older statutes, Abeyta will have to serve only two-thirds of his sentence instead of 85 percent. He also was given credit for 691 days he already has served in jail.